Talk

Interviews with fine ladies and gentlemen involved in one way or another with the water of life…

Ardbeg: “How An Oa is a whole new type of Ardbeg” (Interview)

Ardbeg An Oa Interview with Brandan McCarron (Islay Single Malt Peated Scotch Whisky Talk)

While Ardbeg’s new permanent expression An Oa has already been available for purchase in the UK for a few weeks, it officially launched in the rest of Europe today. We took the opportunity to reach out to the distillery’s Head of Maturing Whisky Stocks, Brendan McCarron (more…)

Wolfburn: “How Thurso’s Finest took the Whisky World by Storm” (Interview)

Wolfburn - Thurso's Finest (Nothern Highlands Single Malt Scotch Whisky Shane Fraser Interview)

Recently, I was lucky to win a bottle of Wolfburn’s precious Kylver II in a Facebook give-away. Since I have been a fan of the young Highlands distillery for quite some time (I bought my bottle of Northland back when it was still called First Release) (more…)

North Star: “Unique whisky for every taste and budget” (Interview)

North Star Spirits (Glasgow Single Cask Scotch Malt Whisky Bottlings Blended BarleyMania)

Glasgow’s North Star is a young whisky company, specializing in drams that tick two simple but important boxes: to be unique and to be delicious. They kicked off their endevours with a six-part selection of single cask whiskies called Series 001 (more…)

Compass Box: “On making The Double Single from two carefully selected components” (Interview)

Jilly Boyd of Compass Box on The Double Single (Blended Scotch Whisky Grain Malt Glen Elgin Girvan Premium Interview BarleyMania)

To create a blended Scotch whisky of staggering complexity, you do not necessarily need to merge a huge number of components. In fact, you can achieve something truly remarkable by blending as little as two differing ingredients. That is the concept behind The Double Single (more…)

Emily Chappell: “Creating the iconic labels of That Boutique-y Whisky Company” (Interview)

Emily Chappell (That Boutique-y Whisky Company Single Cask Malt Scotch Whisky Label Illustration Comic Graphic Novel BarleyMania)

Whenever I stumble upon the exquisite bottlings of That Boutique-y Whisky Company, I cannot take my eyes off them. Not only do they contain excellent drams, but also do they sport one-of-a-kind designs. The comic-styled labels that grace these precious single cask whiskies (more…)

Finlaggan: “How Islay’s mystery malt rose to fame. And what’s up next” (Interview)

Finlaggan Interview (Islay NAS Peated Single Malt Scotch Whisky Dram BarleyMania Talk)

Offering high-quality Islay malts at very friendly price points, it is little surprising that Finlaggan is a brand held in high esteem by whisky lovers across the globe. The veil of mystery that surrounds these drams further adds to the fascination that emanates from them. (more…)

Bruichladdich: “On the latest advancements in the transparency campaign” (Interview)

Bruichladdich On Transparency (Interview Compass Box)

Together with London-based premium blenders Compass Box, Islay-born progressive distillers Bruichladdich are currently one of the forerunners of a fledging transparency movement in the whisky industry. (more…)

Big Peat Christmas 2016: “The very best of Islay in a bottle” (Interview)

Big Peat - Christmas 2016 (Douglas Laing Remarkable Malts Blended Scotch Whisky Whiskey Xmas Islay Peat Limited)

For the sixth year in a row, Glasgow’s Douglas Laing & Co have now released a limited edition seasonal bottling of their signature Islay malt Big Peat. Compared to the regular edition, the X-mas version always comes with a new package and in cask strength. (more…)